Setting up a network of smart meters is not a straightforward business venture, and that alone can be enough of a disincentive for utilities to do so – despite the many advantages that smart metering can provide. Verizon has seized an opportunity this week, and is taking on the specialist metering companies, with the launch of its Grid Wide Utility Services platform – a meter-to-cloud hosted smart metering and analysis platform. As Greentech Media notes, the platform was first announced two years ago, with the promise of an imminent launch. The delay might have been due to the general slowdown in the North American market for smart meters, but Verizon notes that there are currently 147m smart meters in the…